Meet the DevGAMM Awards 2026 Nominees
We’re proud to introduce the 70 nominated games for the third edition of DevGAMM Awards, representing small studios from 25 countries. There’s more than applause on the table: this year, we’re awarding $100,000 in cash prizes supported by Scorewarrior, alongside more than $40,000 in sponsored category prizes from Epic Games Store, Unreal Engine, tinyBuild, Unity, and Godot.
A panel of 191 industry professionals from 40 countries has evaluated the submissions and provided feedback to participating teams. And now the judges will select the winners from this year’s nominees, with the results announced at the November 18 ceremony in Lisbon, streamed worldwide by IGN.
01.Inside the worlds of this year’s nominees
This year’s nominees take the unexpected in fascinating directions. Defend a castle with pinball mechanics, investigate insurance claims from dead heroes, or cook the monsters you’ve just defeated. Build a deck from stickers, fight alongside your past selves, or pursue a corporate promotion as a worm. Explore hand-painted cardboard cities, clay landscapes, and a black-and-white cartoon noir world, where music can drive combat, command armies, or become an act of rebellion. Other games explore memory loss, grief, and friendship through everyday rituals and difficult decisions, inviting you to piece together a shared life through scrapbooking or care for patients in a village torn apart by war.
Behind these games are teams whose ambitions extend well beyond their headcount. Of our 70 nominees, 38 were created by teams of 5 or fewer, including 6 solo developers. The selection spans 30 released titles, 26 demos or vertical slices, 6 games in early access or soft launch, 7 release candidates, and 1 prototype – plenty to play now, and plenty to keep an eye on. For publishers, there are also 17 nominated projects looking for a partner! Your next promising collaboration might already be on the shortlist.
We’ve kept you waiting long enough – it’s time to meet the nominees we’ll be welcoming to the stage in Lisbon!
02.And the Awards 2026 Nominees are…
Grand Prize
- Dead As Disco by Brain Jar Games
- Echoes of Mystralia by Borealys Games
- Mortal Shell II by Cold Symmetry
- MOUSE: P.I. For Hire by Fumi Games
- Phonopolis by Amanita Design
Excellence in Game Design
- Desktop Explorer by Recurring Dream
- Froggy Hates Snow by Crying Brick
- IRON NEST: Heavy Turret Simulator by Nick Nieuwoudt, Dominik Latos
- Rewindead by Spellwork AB
- Timberborn by Mechanistry
Excellence in Visual Art
- Micromega by COVEN
- Midgardr by Holy Radish
- MOUSE: P.I. For Hire by Fumi Games
- Phonopolis by Amanita Design
- UNBEATABLE by D-CELL GAMES
Excellence in Narrative
- Call of the Elder Gods by Out of the Blue Games
- Desktop Explorer by Recurring Dream
- Ledgerbound by OmniMegaSuperCorp
- Pieced Together by Glowfrog Games
- Schrödinger’s Call by Acrobatic Chirimenjako
Excellence in Audio
- Band Wagon by Bippinbits
- Dead As Disco by Brain Jar Games
- Phonopolis by Amanita Design
- Ratatan by Ratata Arts Inc.
- UNBEATABLE by D-CELL GAMES
Best Mobile Game
- Gambonanza by Blukulele (Paul Giovannini)
- Pirates Outlaws 2: Heritage by Fabled Game Limited
- Scritchy Scratchy by Lunch Money Games
- Servant of the Lake by Rusty Lake
- Twin Shot Deluxe by Nitrome Limited
Most Anticipated Game
- Cards & Cannons by Flamehead Games UG
- Crop by Carbonara Games
- Koshmar: The Last Reverie by Purple Ray Studio
- PinKeep by Okomotive
- Steel Soul Shaper by GENEPOP
Best Game in Early Development
- BANDIT KNIGHT by Game Float
- Bolt & Whalington by Orca Studio
- Burdenfall by Leftovers Games
- Code RAPID by Hitbreak Games LLC
- Hold Your Dragons by Igor Krutov
Best Small Team Game
- Compress(space) by B-Deshi Interactive
- Dobbel Dungeon by Gamepie
- MOLDRISE by Raffaele Picca
- Omelet You Cook by Bird Gang Games
- Worming from Home by Zach Northrop and Mason Sabharwal
Meaningful Game
- 1998: The Toll Keeper Story by GameChanger Studio
- Amnios by HES-SO (HEAD-Genève + HEdS)
- As Long As You’re Here by Autoscopia
- Fishbowl by imissmyfriends.studio
- Grow Wild by SPECTRUM48
Best Game from Portugal
- ALL LIGHT IS GONE by Octupus Embrace
- Hanno: A Magical Tale by One Way Eleven
- NECROMENTAL by Digitality Games
- Shelf Heroes by Fun Punch Games
- War Doctor by Red Pine Studios
DevGAMM Choice
- Demon Bluff by UmiArt
- HOMURA HIME by Crimson Dusk
- inKONBINI: One Store. Many Stories by Nagai Industries
- Monster Chef by Studio Pizza
- Wax Heads by Patattie Games
03.Five sponsored categories & plenty of talent
Epic Games Store Indie Spotlight
- Dead As Disco by Brain Jar Games
- Fortune Seller by Kiwick Studios
- Hank: Drowning On Dry Land by My Next Games
- IRON NEST: Heavy Turret Simulator by Nick Nieuwoudt, Dominik Latos
- Luna Abyss by Kwalee Labs
Best Unreal Engine Game
- Call of the Elder Gods by Out of the Blue Games
- Dead As Disco by Brain Jar Games
- Guns of Eschaton by Eschatology Entertainment
- Mortal Shell II by Cold Symmetry
- The Occultist by DALOAR Studios
Best Indie Game by tinyBuild
- Code RAPID by Hitbreak Games LLC
- Hell Hold’em by The Twisted House
- Meat Without Master by Neon Cocoa
- Rewindead by Spellwork AB
- Tattered Banners by CookieByte Entertainment
Best Made With Unity Game
- Dimraeth by Mudtek
- Last Moon by Sköll Studio
- Painted Kingdoms by Hectiq
- Seaward by THE ROOF Interactive
- Tempus Vitae by Whiteboard Games
Best Godot Game
- Band Wagon by Bippinbits
- Burn With Me by Nozomu Games
- MOLDRISE by Raffaele Picca
- My Card Is Better Than Your Card! by Utu Studios
- Pathogenic by Aberrant Labs
Explore the competition on the DevGAMM Awards website.
04.Exclusive game reveals and trailers at the Awards ceremony
The DevGAMM Awards finale will bring this year’s nominees together in Lisbon on November 18, 2026, to celebrate the winners alongside special guests and award partners.
Beyond the awards, audiences can look forward to exclusive game announcements and major updates. IGN, the official streaming partner, will broadcast the ceremony worldwide.
Watch the official DevGAMM Awards Ceremony at 6pm UTC on DevGAMM’s YouTube channel.
